Abernethy News
Our Weekly Newsletter
Welcome to December Abernethy Community!
I hope you all were able to spend some time while we were not in school last week with family and friends and all those that you are grateful for. I can not say it enough, but I am so grateful for our Abernethy Community. The fact that I am privileged enough to be able to spend my days with your students, on the good ones and maybe not so good ones, as well as our staff of amazing teachers makes me feel grateful every day. However, this time of year when you have the dedicated time to reflect and look around, I am reminded of just how lucky I am. Not all days are perfect, and some times are harder than others, but the community that surrounds Abernethy as well as the community within it is what makes me want to show up for more! I love watching your students grow, I love the amazing staff that I get to work with, and I love the community that we have built that puts our students front and center. We all are able to show up in different ways and that is what makes us so amazing.
I always find it amusing that after such a dedicated day of gratitude and reflection, we celebrate with shopping, or Black Friday. We then follow that with Cyber Monday. Now, I am not going to disclose whether or not I participated in either event, so I am going to jump straight to my point, which was this past Tuesday, a day that has been referred to as Giving Tuesday. The difference between Giving Tuesday and the other days, is that Tuesday is a day to give, just to give. There is no purchase or act of having something show up on your doorstep. It is just a day to give. However, in my eyes, that act of giving can come in many different forms. For some of our 5th grade parents who joined the 5th grade students on their field trip on Tuesday, down to Oregon State University, giving could come in the form of the time that they spent on the school bus with 31+ 5th graders! For some, giving could come in the form of other 5th grade parents who graciously offered to bring 5th grade students home when the buses for the field trip did not make it back to school before dismissal. Giving can happen in whatever capacity fits you and your family.
It is on that note that I want to highlight the many ways our Abernethy community can give this holiday season. There is an avenue for everyone!
Please give us your feedback!
Every year, Portland Public Schools gathers feedback about school climate and culture from students, families, and staff through the Successful Schools Survey. The results help us understand the needs of our community in each school and as a district overall. We use the data to provide targeted feedback and training to leaders and staff on how to create healthy school environments that are welcoming for all.
For all participants, the survey is completed online in approximately 15–30 minutes.
Families can find the link to the survey below. Families will also receive printed communications from the school to come home with their students tomorrow.
Families are able to provide feedback about academic perception, barriers to engagement, school safety, school climate, family-school communication, and school fit.
All you have to do is click on the button below, select Abernethy from the drop down menu and begin!
The Successful Survey will end on December 16th
I am leaving in the letter from Ms. Morgan, our school counselor who works with all our Abernethy families who at any point in time reach out for financial assistance. Ms. Morgan coordinates through the PTA, funding field trips, after school classes, school pictures, school supplies and at this time of the year focuses on being able to provide gift cards to families who are in need. As a school we are not able to purchase gift cards, and our PTA is not able to either. Inorder to be able to provide financial support for our families, we are asking for gift card donations. Ms. Morgan accounts for all gift cards and splits the total amount received with all families that she is working with.
Thank you all who were able to bring in non-perishable food over conferences. We were able to supply a lot of needed food to families for the break. I am hoping to be able to do that again. We will have boxes in the office for anyone who wants to send in something to donate. Big or small, all items help. Specific items can be:
Canned:
- beans - black and/or pinto
- tomatoes
- corn
- fruits
- soups
Oatmeal
Granola bars
Pasta
Rice
Flour
Sugar
Vegetable Oil
Dried beans
Things are different this year, but it does not mean that there is not a need. The PPS School Board voted at the end of last school year to stop all individual school foundations and rather have a whole district Fund For PPS. That means that last year was the last year that we can fundraise through our foundation for staff positions within our school. This year, we were able to use the funds raised last year to hire our amazing Educational Assistant, Jessica Jensen, to help out with the larger class sizes in 3rd through 5th grade. PPS has not shared a complete plan for what the Fund For PPS model will look like and what percent of all the raised funds will go to what school. They are working to build a comprehensive plan, however, it is unknown now what that will look like for Abernethy. Our PTA remains strong with the same commitment as always, to fund any academic support, such as Reading Results, which provides an amazing reading intervention to our 1st through 4th grade students. We are even expanding the program to include Kindergarten starting in February. We are currently looking to build the same model of a program to support math. Not only as an intervention, but as an extension through challenge math.
Our PTA also has an incredible commitment to improving our school grounds. We have a "Grounds Committee" who have been working since last year with PPS facilities to build another play structure for our older student, replace the turf, improve the drainage on our playground. They are also planning for the celebration of Abernethy turning 100 in 2025 with a mural replacing the wall behind our field that always gets covered with graffiti!
There is so much in the works, I am sure I am not mentioning everything. Not all will be able to be done this year, but any donation through the Annual Appeal goes directly to support all these improvements to Abernethy.
Do you like OMSI? Just check out our December Calendar! So many opportunities to help support these field trips by being a volunteer! Come spend a day with your student and all their classmates!
We still need a few more volunteers to cover lunch and recess duties on Friday, December 6 and Friday, December 13. Sign up for a shift to give our wonderful teachers and staff a well-deserved break.
Choose a Date:
Friday, December 6th
Friday, December 13th
How to Sign Up:
Select your preferred date and sign up for a shift here!
Check in 5 minutes before your scheduled start time in the front office to receive instructions on where to go for your assigned job.
Do you have any outgrown clothes that we can stock the health room with? With the rain and mud, a number of students will come to the health room for a change of clothes. Since the season has turned cold an rainy, we have already gone though a good share of what we had built up. We are currently seeking donations of clean, gently used clothing to ensure that all our students have access to clean and appropriate clothing during the school day.
Needed Items & Sizes:
Pants: Long pants in kids sizes small, medium, large, and extra-large
Tops: Long-sleeved shirts, sweatshirts, and sweaters in kids sizes medium, large, and extra-large
Please drop off items to the school office.
As we wrap up November, and get ready to enter into December, I wanted to remind everyone that the December holiday season brings many different meanings to our Abernethy community and families. For some it is a time with family and friends, for others it can be a time of stress while trying to meet demands coming in all directions. For some it can also be a time when we really feel the loss of those who may be missing in our holiday traditions, at our dinner tables, and overall in our celebrations. This can also be a time when families experience the incredibly high cost food and the impact it has on their holiday season.
Each year, our Abernethy community has come together to support families during this extended winter break and the holidays. As we offer this every year, we also know that inflation and especially the rising cost of food has greatly impacted some of our families, so supporting one another as a community is just as important as ever. This is why we are pulling together and hoping to collect donations of gift cards (Fred Meyer, Target, Walmart) and new winter clothes (sweatshirts, sweats, long sleeve shirts and pants).
If you would like to donate a gift card, of any amount, please either bring the gift card into the office, or you can send it with your student in an envelope and have them bring it to the office. If you happen to see myself, Mrs. Dunn, or Jenny Morgan at morning drop off or afternoon pick up, you can always pass it on that way. We will be collecting all donations and then delivering them to our families the week before we leave for Winter Break.
If you have any additional questions about needed items, please contact Jenny Morgan at jmorgan1@pps.net 503-679-4799.
If you are a family who is finding a need for assistance of any kind, please complete this google form.
